Things to Do in NYC: Arts & Crafts Events
By Troy Segal
In honor of New York Antiques Week later this month, we present a collection of arts and crafts-themed things to do in NYC. Whether you collect, practice or just like to admire, these talks, tours and classes will be just your porcelain cup of tea.
Christian Louboutin. “Printz,” Spring/Summer 2013. Courtesy of Christian Louboutin. Photograph: Jay Zukerkorn
Walk This Way: Take a docent-guided tour of the Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe exhibit. It’s a pain-free way to appreciate the looks and construction of elevated footwear, from 16th-century chopines to mid-20th-century stilettos to contemporary wedges. Brooklyn Museum, Sunday, Jan. 11.
Something at Your Throat: Textile designer and artist Debra Rapoport leads a scarf-knitting workshop, teaching the tubular method of making silk and wool creations. It ties in (no pun intended) to the exhibit New Territories: Laboratories for Design, Craft and Art in Latin America. Museum of Arts and Design, Saturday, Jan. 31.
Cut-out Decorative Foil, 1881–1912; Designed by Lockwood de Forest (American, 1850–1932); Cut, punched and perforated sheet brass; Gift of Sullivan Goss-An American Gallery, 2014-42-1; Photo: Matt Flynn © Smithsonian Institution
Exotic Arts: American designer/painter Lockwood de Forest (1850–1932) fell in love with the arts and crafts of India during a honeymoon sojourn on the Subcontinent. He created a series of teak wood and brass panels for the library of Andrew Carnegie’s mansion—today known as the Teak Room of the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum. The newly restored premises is the site for three scholars to discuss his life and works. Thursday, Feb. 5.
Image: Jeremiah “GrayBeard” Richards — Flickr
Breath-taking: An advisor to The Studio of the Corning Museum of Glass lectures on ancient—we’re talking 1st century—techniques of blowing glass, and the remarkably contemporary-looking pieces that resulted. Don’t miss the related Ennion: Master of Roman Glass exhibit. Metropolitan Museum of Art, Friday, Feb. 20.
Shine On: In early 18th-century France, when lacquered surfaces were all the rage, four brothers developed a veneering technique that became one of the better European efforts to duplicate the glossy look of Asian lacquer. A German museum authority’s talk on Vernis Martin includes refreshments—just watch where you set down that glass. Bard Graduate Center, Tuesday, Feb. 24.